Coating material



' pigments are,

"Patented May 1 7, 1933 -2,1 1': 36c COATING MATERIAL HaroldF. Saunders and Charles Donald Downs, Chicago, Ill., assignors to The Sherwin-Williams Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation 0f Ohio No Drawing.

Claims.

This invention relates to the treatment of pig-, ments and the like, and particularly to the neutralization-of the effect of adsorbed water thereon.

It is well known that a relatively high degree of dehydration of pigments may be accomplished in the process known as pulping which com-. prises the replacement of water from an aqueous suspension of the pigment, such as is obtained in precipitation, aqueous quenching, or other process operation, by a liquid substantially non-miscible with water; and that in such pulping process elimination of water down to 0.5 to 2% of the "pulp is the practical limit to which water is removed. To eilfect as large a percentage of replacement as this, special agents are resorted to, which by contact with the pigment, cause it to wet preferentially in oil rather than water. Some of the agents frequently used are drying oil fatty acids, soaps, sodium phosphate, borates, resinates, r esins, amides or alcohols,'naphthenic acid, and the like.

Theoretically, complete replacement of water can be obtained; but this complete replacement is never reached in commercial practice, since the pigment particles are frequently somewhat coalesced into aggregates and the treating agents are unable to reach the surfaces of the interior particles of these aggregates. In addition, the waterdmmiscible liquids will in themselves retain a certain percentage of water in a partially emulsified condition.

The pigment dehydrated by a pulping process possesses some very distinct advantages over the same pigment dehydratedby the customary proa cedure of filtration and drying; since the latterintroduces certain physical and chemical changes,

disadvantageously afiectlng color, opacity, texture and wettability.- ,;For this reason, the pulping process of dehydration is commonly resorted to wherever the unavoidable presence of the small amount of water is not considered harmful.

Thus,,ior example, pulped white lead in linseed oil, commonly referred to as lead-in-oil is astandard commercial article, its major use being for exterior house paints by further addition of drying oils, thinners, and driers.

The use of pulped pigments has not heretofore been practicable when further reduction was to be made with bodied oils, varnishes, natural or synthetic gums, and the like, because the water present in the pulp produced a livering or clabbering by change in the solubilities of these materials so that they would leave solution and curdlc.

, Use of the zinc sulphideipigments, such as lithopone and similar high opacity pigments, in pulped form, has hitherto been limited since not only does the pulping of these pigments result in the higher proportionsof water, upwards of 1%, but

in the main, utilized for pulp ina to 2.0%,

Application December 7, 1935, Serial No. 53,428

special interior finishes where bodied oils, treated oils, varnishes and varnish gums are considered essential to obtain certain desirable effects in brushing, gloss or flatness, film hardness and the like.

, From a theoretical standpoint, water which is retained adsorbed on the surface of hydrophilic' particles does not as such mulsify to form the internal phase of an emulsion in the water-immiscible liquid, but this internal phase consists of the combined pigment plus adsorbed water. The apparent effect on the pulp is a shortness, or a short-flow grainy-appearing paste. Further addition or retreatment with the usual treating agents previously mentioned does not change this effect or appearance, since the emulsion is already stabilized, and the water not far from the natural solubility of water in the liquid, hence it cannot be removed or replaced and there is no tendency for it to leave the pigment particle. We havev discovered that when a substance such as lecithin, obtained from soya bean oil, or a modification of lecithin, obtained by heating, bleaching, purifying, or otherwise-treatin either soybean or other lecithin, is added to the small proportion. of approximately 0.5 a modification of the emulsion is obtained and, an immediate visible change takes place, the pulp becoming noticeably of a long,

easy flow and losing the grainy appearance.- Further, when such pulp is reduced with the aforementioned bodied oils, heat-treated oils, varnishes or varnish gums, which areintended to I be referred to in the claims by the expression oil paint vehicle, they are not curdled and their natural properties remain unafiected.

The percentage of lecithin required is not critical. Partial effect is obtained where lower percentages than specified are used, and a greater amount may e used, but since the desired result is obtained within the range specified, any excess is merely wasted.

' The superior qualities of the pulped pigment,

' ity, are thus made available.

such as flne texture and softness, a high degree As an example of the practice of this invention:

Two pounds of lecithin are added to lbs. of a lithopone pulp carrying approximately 1%% 'of water and obtained by replacement of water from an aqueous suspension of lithopone by aliquid consisting essentially of 98% mineral spirits and 1%%- linseed oil, and linseed oil fatty acids. "Thepaste thus made is stirred until the lecithin is well dispersed. An immediate reduction or the short flow is apparent.

Thesupe'riorlty of this product made 'in accordance with our in following comparative tests:

1. 1010 lbs. of lithopone,

vention is shown by the dried in the usual a manner, was made up into a flat wall finish with the usual flat liquids. I p I 2. An attemptto make a flat wag finish with the same liquids as in No. ly but usingpulped I lithopone instead 91 the'dried ilthopone, fail becauseagurdyiiusteresulted.

3. A flat wall finish was made with'the same v /lihuids as-in No. l and No. 2 but using lithopone in lecithin-treated'pulp form equivalent to only I. 910 lbs. ol lithopone onthe dry base.

On painting similar surfaces in the usual way with No. 1 and No. 3, not only was No. 3 whiter than No. 1 but it showed markedly greater covering power.

A ll The two paints were then carefully measured on an opacimeter using the Martens photometer Sq. ft. per lb.- of pigment black to 96 contrast ratio 30 ularly dried lithopone 47.6

swing thus w-w-i. our invention, what we cl is:

ii. coating compontion no of an oil 2,117,866 I v I v I paint vehicle, a drier, pigment material and lecithin, said pigment material comprising a pulpedf pigment containing. a small percentage of water and the amount of the lecithin being between one-hair and two per cent, by weight, oasaid pigment.

, ZQA eoating composition consisting of an oil paint vehiclermdrier. Pigment material and lecithin, said pigment material comprising "pu1ped lithopone contamngq cent or water and the amount of .thin being between one-half and two per cent, by weight,

of said lithopone.

3. A "pulped pigment, for coating compositions, having a water content 01' less than two 13 per cent and having incorporated therewith in a state or completedispersion an amount of lecithin which is from one-half to two per cent, by weight, of the pigment.

4. A "pulped lithopone having a water content oi less than two per cent and having incorporated therewith in a state 01' complete dispersion an amount of lecithin which is irom one-half to two per cent, by weight, of lithopone.

5. The herein described method of improving the covering power of an oil-emulsified pulped pigment for paints, having a water content not in excess of two per cent of the pigment, by weight,

which consists in adding thereto and completely dispersing therein an amount 01 lecithin which is from one-half. to two per cent, by weight, of the plant.

F. saummas.

than two per 1. 

